Have You Been Called By A Deity?

Have you ever been called by a Goddess or God? Pegged for service, so-to-speak? What does that mean to you?

I think sometimes people don’t recognize what being called is, or what it truly means, before they jump right in and try to “go all the way.”

As I understand it, particular Goddesses or Gods call to us. Some people pick a God/dess and run with it (like doing a Goddess Immersion exercise, which I talk about in a few YouTube vids). I believe that, in general, most deities are keen to work with a person … but there are always exceptions to the rule.

The Coven I was trained in followed a specific set of Deities according to the Tradition. The Coven I run now does the same. There are technically 7 deities and 6 directional guardians, but that’s not to say these are the only beings we honor.

On my personal path, I was drawn to Kwan Yin quite a long time ago, and She and I have been together ever since. I was drawn to Ganesha for years, but never would work with Him, until I was unemployed for 5 years. And not long after I took First in my “home Coven,” I was made a Priest of Pan. Those latter 3 are part of my personal, private practice.

To me, if a Deity “calls” you, it really means you’ve been pegged for service. Something I often tell my Coven is, “If service is beneath you, leadership is beyond you.” And what that really means, on one level, is that a Deity isn’t going to call you as part of Their Tribe, unless you’re actually willing to serve. Even deities who are kind of stand-off-ish (those who just want to show you how to do the work, and then you go do it), aren’t going to peg you unless you’re willing to serve.

We kind of need to be clear, though, on what “service” means. I’m not really talking about serving the God/dess, as in doing regular offerings and rituals and what-not. I’m really talking about serving other people, because that’s the only reason a God/dess will call to you. Sure, you serve the Deity or Deities with the offerings, rituals, etc, but you really only serve Them if you serve others.

If you're feeling drawn by a deity, you're probably already being called.

If you’re feeling drawn to a deity, you’re probably already being called. I say that because of my own experience with Ganesha. I don’t consider myself a Priest of Ganesha, necessarily, because His and my work together specifically revolves around me, opening doors, and breaking obstacles in my life (but …)

When I started working with Ganesha, it was instant rapport. I called, He came, I did a home puja, and BOOM the door into a new field of work immediately opened up. It was less than 2 weeks after I started working with Ganesha that I started working at the job I have now, after a 5-year stint of joblessness. And I’ve been doing this job for 3 years. Ganesha just kind of blew away all the obstacles and opened all the necessary doors, and here I am. So that’s how I know I was called to work with Him.

But that doesn’t necessarily mean I’m called to work with Him on behalf of others (which is really what being a Priest or Priestess of a Deity means). If Ganesha brings it up, I will – or if someone asks me to, I would clear it with Ganesha before just jumping on it.

I am, however, a Priest of Pan. And that’s a whole different kind of story. I was actually being trained in my home Coven and had just been Initiated to First Degree. One of the other guys came to me and said, “You’re supposed to be a Priest of Pan.” I’d always been interested in Pan, and did some research on Pan, but most of what I had come across was the rainbow-flavored goat-god who played pipes in the woods. His darker aspects weren’t really prevalent in most of what I read at the time.

So, I was a little leery of this guy, just because he was older than me. I consulted my Initiator. She instantly informed me that this guy was completely legit. He’d been in the Coven for years. Her husband – the former High Priest – had made the guy a Priest of Pan a few years before the Coven started. The group had been going strong for about 5 years when my fellow Covener came to me with that proposal..

So I heard the guy out, did some research of my own, and decided that I should take this on. So he and I studied some Pan-related material for around a year (I think it was) I was then made a Priest of Pan through a specific initiatory ritual. I know of a few others who are legit Priests of Pan, but really, we’re not like a group or a Coven – we’re just a bunch of guys who were pegged by Pan to be of service.

Most people who get pegged to serve a particular deity don’t generally ask for it, as far as I know. Usually, it’s the Deity who reaches out first. I have known people who did research on several deities for years before they ever felt drawn to any particular deity at all. But, when the time was right, they felt drawn to the Deity for whom they would eventually become a Priest or Priestess. That feeling of being drawn – like a piece of iron to a magnet – is the “being called” part of it all.

When I started my path to become a Priest of Pan, there were some sacrifices that had to be made. And it’s likely there would be sacrifices (or taboos) asked of anyone who was pegged by a Goddess or God for service. One of the requirements I had to fulfill prior to my Initiation as a Priest of Pan was no ejaculation of any kind for 15 days. No sex, no masturbation – nothing. I was not given a “standard” set of taboos – I think it varies from person to person based upon Pan’s whim at the time. There are other observances, but you find those out as you become a Priest of Pan.

I believe most deities are okay to work with anyone, so long as you’re sincere in your devotion. There’s no doubt that there are exceptions who won’t work with a person just because the God/dess doesn’t get a good vibe from you, or whatever. Or maybe you have ulterior motives and the God/dess sees them (and isn’t fond of them).

Do you have experience with serving a particular Deity? With being a Priest/ess of a God/dess? One with whom your relationship is exceptionally close?

If you're feeling drawn to a deity, you're probably already being called.

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If you're feeling drawn to a deity, you're probably already being called.

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If you're feeling drawn by a deity, you're probably already being called.